Diamante

The gunfire lasted only half a minute, and the lingering smell of gunpowder in the air was quickly washed away by the heavy rain.

The leading Donquixote Family member turned back to Diamante, wanting to ask for his next orders.

"Now!"

Van seized the chance, pushed off with his feet, and shot out of the Operation Room like an arrow loosed from a bow.

The others only saw a blur before a dark figure closed in on them.

A flash of steel appeared. It was so fast that they only heard a sharp whistle through the air before one of their companions staggered and fell.

The rest drew their blades to fight back, but Van was simply too fast for them to react.

They could only watch helplessly as Van darted among them, feel the icy blade slice across their skin, and then sink into eternal darkness.

"Bastard!"

Diamante furiously activated his ability. The ground began rising and falling again, throwing everything around him off balance.

He himself was unaffected. Drawing his rapier, he charged Van with a crazed expression.

At that moment, he forgot Doflamingo's warning, completely exposing his arrogant and overconfident nature.

"I thought you'd run." Van crouched on the ground and chuckled. "This saves me a lot of trouble."

As he pressed down with his palm, the Operation Room spread out once more, and the ground, like a tamed pet, instantly went from violent to normal.

Diamante's expression shifted slightly, but it was already too late to retreat. He could only give it everything he had.

Sword: Snake Sword!

The rapier instantly softened, winding like a silver snake through water as its path became erratic and unpredictable.

It possessed both the hard sharpness of metal and the tough flexibility of cloth, making it impossible to guard against.

Van knew that blocking it head-on would put him at a disadvantage, so he simply dodged and flashed behind Diamante.

The moment he saw Van disappear, Diamante sensed danger and used his ultimate defensive move without hesitation.

Bullfight Cape!

The red cape floated up on its own and wrapped tightly around him before turning into black metal.

Van's blade struck it with a clang, but could not harm him at all.

Bullfight: Hammer!

Diamante slashed backward. The softened rapier rapidly folded as it moved, ultimately turning into a hard hammer.

"No Observation Haki?"

Van forcefully tapped the iron cape with the tip of his foot, dodging the skull-crushing attack while leaning back and opening the distance.

"Killing you is enough!"

The rapier transformed again, and a metal bull's head appeared in Diamante's hand.

He thrust it forward fiercely, trying to ram Van with its horns.

"Without using my ability, it really seems I can't do anything about that turtle shell of yours. In that case, you're not even worth using as a sparring partner."

Van vanished in an instant. When he reappeared, he was already on the other side of the Operation Room.

He raised his left hand, curling his fingers together like an eagle's claw as invisible spatial power gathered around them.

Diamante realized something was wrong and swiftly shook his cape. Dozens of party poppers shot into the sky.

Death Enjambre!

If his earlier attack had merely been a test, this was full firepower.

The paper scraps filling the sky turned into iron balls, covering the entire space so densely that there was nowhere to dodge.

But Van was the master of the Operation Room. At this moment, everything within it was under his control.

A confident smile curled across his lips. His left hand clenched violently, as though crushing something invisible.

Slaughterhouse: Cut!

In an instant, every iron ball froze in midair, unable to fall any farther.

The space shifted immediately afterward. Just as a dark gleam appeared on Diamante's arms, his body was dismembered.

"Too weak! You can't cover your whole body. Before me, it's no different from not having awakened Armament Haki at all."

Van hooked a finger and left the Operation Room with Diamante's head.

The iron balls in the sky fell at once, smashing his separated body into a bloody pulp.

"System, I designate Diamante, Drake, and Baby-5 as Fate Anchors. Set the time to one year."

Before Diamante died, Van issued the command to create a Fate Event.

[System evaluation in progress...]

[Evaluation passed! Congratulations, Host. You have spent 4,000 points to construct Fate Event: Different Paths]

[Fate Anchors: Diamante, Drake, Baby-5]

[Hint: The future draws near; different roads traveled together]

"This hint is getting more and more interesting..."

Van considered how he should train Drake and Baby-5 next, and his thoughts gradually drifted away.

Not long after, a burst of disorderly footsteps came from behind him. The slave miners had arrived.

"Sir, Diamante..." someone asked through gritted teeth, "is he dead?"

"He still has one breath left. I'm taking the head. You can deal with the body however you want."

"In ten minutes, everyone bring whatever is useful and gather at the dock. I'll arrange for you to leave."

With that, Van carried Diamante's head back to the dock.

There were still some deckhands on the ship, likely peripheral members responsible for sailing it. He could not be bothered to question them and directly cut them apart before throwing them to the fish.

"Sir, has everything been settled?"

Perhaps having noticed the blood and the disturbance among the fish, Blue Moon came looking for him with a tense expression.

Only after seeing that Van was unharmed did she pat her chest and swim to the side of the dock with a smile.

"It's settled..."

As Van spoke, the slave miners arrived. Nearly everyone had something in their hands.

"That's so many people!"

Blue Moon was startled. She turned and swam beneath the ship, hiding herself.

"Several hundred people... Taking all of them with me would be a burden, and it would be hard to settle them afterward..."

Van thought for a moment and decided to make several more ships, letting these people return home on their own.

Dismantling the houses here would provide enough wood, and he could use his ability to assemble ships directly without nails, glue, or anything else.

As for shipbuilding techniques, he could simply scale down the structure of the transport ship proportionally. There was no difficulty at all.

"Sir, we've packed everything."

"Are you taking us home?"

"Can I follow you from now on? Pirates destroyed my hometown, and I have nowhere to go..."

With so many people came so many thoughts. They all spoke at once, making Van's head ache.

"I'll build four ships for you. Divide yourselves into four groups according to the locations of your hometowns, with each group assigned to the nearest route."

"Once you're divided, go move the materials. When the ships are finished, you can return home yourselves."

With that, Van came to the building area and expanded the Operation Room.

At first, everyone was full of doubt, unable to understand what he meant by building ships. But when he started dismantling the houses, they were utterly amazed.

What kind of miraculous power was this?

Everyone stood with their mouths agape, blankly watching Van work until all the houses had been broken down and all the planks neatly stacked. Only then did they come back to their senses.

Without needing another reminder, they immediately got to work, carrying the planks to the shore.

Van returned to the dock and expanded the Operation Room again, "examining" the structure of the transport ship.

Only after forming a rough blueprint in his mind did he begin adjusting the planks' sizes and thicknesses, joining them into complete ships.

Because there were not quite enough materials, he not only simplified the overall structure but also tore down a great deal of wood from the transport ship.

The miners were not idle either. Some movable components had to be installed manually, and several people who understood shipbuilding voluntarily took responsibility for the task.

By nightfall, the four new ships, each more than twenty meters long, were finally complete, and everyone began cheering.

"Sir, let's hold a banquet before we leave!"